I made that!

I've been reading a cooking blog (other than the best cooking blog ever: mommacooks.net), and the author would like to get to the point where she makes everything she eats. Although I would LOVE to do all my own baking, canning, etc., I'm not sure I'll ever give up the occasional bowl of cereal for dinner. But, last night after class I made this fab squash recipe that a friend gave me. Recipe follows!

First preheat the oven to 425, and chop your spaghetti squash in half. Scoop out the seeds, then place the squash cut side down on a cookie sheet drizzled with olive oil. Then, bring 2 cups of mushroom broth (or any other kind of stock) and 1 cup of faro to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 30-40 minutes, until broth is absorbed. Meanwhile, slice one or two shallots and caramelize in a frying pan in olive oil or butter (or a mixture) over medium or medium-low heat. Dice up 2-3 carrots, 2-3 celery stalks into fairly small pieces and crush 2-3 garlic cloves, then add to the shallots after they're nice and soft (garlic first for a minute, then the other goodies). Sauté on medium low heat with thyme, rosemary, sage, salt and pepper to taste, adding a splash of stock once or twice to give it good flavor. When the faro is done, add it to the veggies with about a third of a cup of dried cranberries. In a separate pan, toast some slivered or chopped almonds (about half a cup). Once they are toasted, add them to the faro mixture. Now's a good time to check the squash. Stick a fork in the center of one to see if the "noodles" pull apart easily. Once the squash is done, cut in into 4-6 slices in any way you think looks nice. Put a couple of heaps of faro mixture on top of a piece of squash and finish with a couple of tablespoons of feta. Et voilà!

I made a few changes: I used Red Quinoa instead of faro, veggie broth instead of mushroom broth, and stilton with cranberries instead of feta. I made the changes simply because I was too lazy to go to the store. The next time I try the recipe, I'm going to try it as listed in the original. Can't wait!